Last week, four pupils from each of the Jesuit primary schools made their way to Barlborough Hall School in Derbyshire for the seventh annual Ignite Conference. The first Ignite Conference was held in St John's Beaumont School in 2011 and was created to help build links between the Jesuit primary schools and to share ideas and good practice on pupil leadership. In total 24 pupils and 10 teachers arrived at Barlborough Hall School. They came from St John's Beaumont School near Windsor, Donhead Preparatory School in Wimbledon, St Mary's Hall School near Stonyhurst, St Joseph's School in Hurst Green, and St Aloysius Junior School, as well as Farleigh School in Andover.

The pupils were welcomed by host families from around Barlborough for the two nights. On Monday, the pupils got to explore Barlborough Hall. It is a Tudor mansion with a priest hole, built in 1584 by Sir Francis Rhodes - a member of the council of the trial of St Margaret Clitherow.  Also included in the experience was a visit to the centre of Sheffield and the Crucible Theatre. A tour of the theatre included the dressing rooms, the props, the huge collection of costumes (which they got to try on) and the main stage. Maybe this will inspire them to join the illustrious list of Jesuit alumni who become famous actors, most recently Tom Holland from Wimbledon College.  Then they were taken to the nearby Millennium Gallery where they listened to a talk on the history of Sheffield and then were tasked with designing their own metalwork. Later, they visited St Marie's Cathedral in the city, giving them time to pray for their families and friends back home.

On Tuesday, the pupils worked on the themes of the Jesuit Pupil Profile and constructed symbols based on those themes, such as being kind, compassionate, hopeful, faith-filled, etc. Breaking to gather around the Eucharist, with mass celebrated by Fr Michael Beattie SJ, the pupils then showed the videos that had been working on. Each school had been encouraged to make a video showing how they put into action a particular theme of the Jesuit Pupil Profile. They have now all returned to their respective schools where they will present this rich experience of Jesuit education to their own assemblies.